As We Fall
by Master of Chronicles
Summary: Set after the fall of Cocoon, Cloud is living in New Bodhum, but Lightning is gone. That's not stopping the Fal'Cie that put him there into getting him to realize he has a greater path to walk. One that might remove him from Gran Pulse forever.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: And after over a year I am back!**** Sorry for the long wait, but as I was in the middle of writing the original As We Fall, FFXIII-2 was announced and I was so bummed I decided to wait until it came out before continuing. But that led to me giving up on all my projects, so everything came to a stand still and I fell into a minor depression. I can't promise it won't happen again, but this time the whole story is written out and all that is left is the polishing. My apologies to those who were waiting and those who reviewed the original As we fall which I deleted to make room for this one.**

**CONTAINS SPOILERS! So read at you own risk. I only played about an hour into FFXIII-2 before getting to work on this baby which took about ten hours to write. The spoilers aren't all that big, but I wanted to let you know all the same. **

**For those who don't know, this is part 4 of a 6 part saga I am planning, so the other fics are Of My Dreams, When I wake, and In Our Hands respectively. This is about the ongoing romance between Cloud Strife and Lightning Farron and how their love affects not just their lives, but their worlds**.

**Thanks for all the support I've gotten over the last few stories, it really helps me as a writer to see just how far I can go.**

AS WE FALL

Chapter One

Life in New Bodhum

Cloud knew he was surrounded, but he did not feel panicked in the least.

_Well, at least this saves me time from having to find all of them._ He thought with a smile.

They were called Bloodbaths, large, toad like monsters with great maws and barbed claws. Snow had warned him about them. The females, almost golden in their color, had an annoying habit to call out other males with her mating call. This meant within minutes one Bloodbath could turn into a dozen. They could always be found near the water's edge, even on Cocoon. But on Pulse they were much bigger. Heck, everything on Pulse was bigger.

Cloud found himself knee deep in seawater, six reddish grey shadows hiding underneath the surface. Which one was the female? It was hard to tell. One began to go very still. It was getting ready to charge. The Fusion sword sliced through the water just as the beast began to dart forward, the blade hardly meeting any resistance. As the body bubbled up into view two more struck at Cloud, but he was already gone, leaping up into the air in a smooth arc, his blade flashing through the waves. Three down, three left.

Then Cloud heard the mating call and silently cursed. The female was still alive. Four more shadowy figures under swam up, and this time they popped their heads out of the water and hissed at the blond man. Whether it was because they could taste their own dead in the water or that growing numbers had emboldened them, all seven monsters leapt out at Cloud at the same moment, their mouths wide open with dripping fangs. Cloud divided the Fusion Sword in two and did a 360 slice as they came at him, leaving most dead and some maimed. The surviving Bloodbaths, just two in fact, gave out cries of anger and agony before disappearing beneath the waves. The former mercenary quietly reassembled Fusion and looked down at the mess he had made. Green body fluids and entrails stained the water and littered the sand on the nearby beach. But already the sea was cleaning it up.

That's when Cloud heard the sound of an airbike. He recognized it immediately. The roaring was a giveaway that it had been remodeled. Army bikes are designed to be quiet to sneak up on the enemy. And civilians like airbikes that don't scare away the neighbors and that are built safety first in mind. No, this airbike could only belong to a group that didn't fit into the civilian or army category.

"Cloud! Are you ok?" cried a dark haired woman at him. She wasn't the one driving the bike, of course. She was the one holding the large gun.

The one flying was a blue haired young man dressed in fancy clothing decorated with feathers and other ornate, while the girl seemed happy to show off her skin to the point it was barely modest for most beach goers. The man, obviously adept at flying his bike, landed it several yards away from the rolling waves. Both riders got off, the young woman giving her friend another gun, and approached Cloud.

"Looks like the party is over." The blue haired man said, sounding not exactly disappointed.

"I wouldn't say that." Cloud said in a low voice.

The others looked at him with frowns on their faces, until they heard the roar.

"What was that!" The woman asked, her gun up at the ready.

"Look!" The blue haired man exclaimed, pointing a finger out to the ocean.

A wave started to come in, but it didn't look natural. It was dark and no wider than half a dozen feet, but it rose and rose until it towered the group. A large beast breached out of it, its roar like clashing boulders, flailing its arms about with huge muscles that looked capable of lifting several tons and great amphibious hands that could crush rock.

"It's an Alpha Bloodbath!" The woman cried out in horror.

It lunged at Cloud, who quickly leapt out of harms away as the others opened fire. Bullets punched holes in the monster's skin but couldn't reach any of its vitals, so it only got mad. It came down hard on the surface of the water, creating a mini tsunami of sorts that washed over the man and woman, throwing them back, tearing their guns out of their hands. Cloud went at the Alpha with both hands gripped solidly on the hilt of his sword and leapt high into the air, bringing his whole weight into an attack against the head. Small Bloodbaths are easy to cleave. Giant ones aren't so much. Cloud's blade cut into the skull several inches deep, but the skull was so thick it didn't kill it. Regardless the Alpha went insane with the burning pain Fusion was causing it and started to whelp and screech. Cloud tried to keep his grip, but was quickly thrown off.

"What can we do now?" The dark haired woman asked after her and the young man had searched for their weapons in vain.

"Yuj! Lebreau! Use your magic!" Cloud had to shout back, being separated from them. "Use lightning on it!"

The two NORA members looked doubtingly at each other; they weren't very proficient at magic at all. But swallowing their fears, they began to attack with everything they had. Their thunder strikes stung, but wasn't powerful enough to inflict injury. Cloud could see that the monster would soon be on top of them. So before the giant Bloodbath could strike back, Cloud called down Thundaga, using Fusion like a lightning rod. The sound of thunder was deafening and the flash of energy blinded everything that had eyes, and for a second afterwards, the world was silent and still. The Bloodbath was dead before it hit the water, its crisp skin causing the seawater to bubble with a hiss of steam. The others stared in amazement and then broke into cheers as Cloud retrieved his sword.

"That was so amazing!" Lebreau said excitedly. "I've never seen anything like it!"

"NORA sure could've used you back on Cocoon, Cloud." Yuj added.

Cloud felt embarrassed at the compliments. "Thanks guys."

The smile on Yuj's face vanished suddenly. "My bike!"

It had gotten knocked over and swamped with water by the Bloodbath's attack, and now laid on its side, the electrical systems crackling and smoking.

"No! I spent over twenty-five thousand gil on this baby, now look at her! It's going to take months to fix." The blue haired man lamented as he stood it upright.

"Just ask Maqui to give it a look. You know he loves to tinker on it anyway." Lebreau said as she finally located their gun. She squeezed the trigger to see if they were in working condition. All that came out was water and sand. "Blast! Two more guns out of working order. And the supply airship doesn't show for another two weeks!"

"It seems that this battle was more costly than we thought." Yuj muttered angrily.

"Well, at least no one was hurt." Cloud pointed out.

Yuj nodded in agreement. "By the way, nice going with your magic, Cloud. You're leaving the rest of us in the dust.

_That's because I'm a l'Cie._ But instead Cloud shrugged. "I just practice a lot."

"Hey guys." Lebreau called out, who was standing at the water's edge, letting the waves touch her toes. "These dead Bloodbaths are going to attract scavengers if we just leave them here. Cloud, think you could set them on fire if we piled them up on the beach? Then we can go home."

"What about my ride?" Yuj said in a distraught voice.

"We'll just hide it near the tree line and cover it with those large jungle leaves. You and Maqui can come for it later." Lebreau suggested.

The three of them worked for almost another hour, hauling up the carcasses of the battle. The giant Bloodbath had to be cut into portions to move, which Cloud did mostly alone. By the time it was all set ablaze the sun announced late afternoon and they began the long walk back to New Bodhum. It would've been only minutes by airbike, which Yuj would not stop reminding them.

"It's so hot out today!" Yuj said. Truth be told it was more humid than hot, but the Cocoon native wasn't yet used to the less regulated climate of Gran Pulse.

"At least what you're wearing is somewhat sensible." Lebreau remarked before glancing at Cloud. "All that this soldier boy is wearing is black on black on black."

"Yeah. It's not very fashionable." Yuj agreed.

"It's more battle practical." Cloud explained. "If you over dress that you lose freedom of movement. And if the colors you wear are bright it only paints you as a target."

"So you think what I'm wearing is practical for fighting?" Lebreau said as she did a small twirl to show herself off.

Cloud had to hold himself back from blurting out 'no'.

"Just be careful handling those big guns of yours, Lebreau." He warned. "Those types tend to heat up fast and without some kind of layer of clothing you could easily burn yourself."

"I'll keep that in mind." She answered.

"Speaking of big, how the heck do you handle a sword that size, Cloud? When Maqui was putting it together for you after you gave him the designs, I had the toughest time lifting just one of the smaller blades, let alone the whole thing!" Yuj eyed Fusion as it rested in its leather sheath on Cloud's back.

Cloud almost gave a sigh. As much time as he had spent with his new friends, his past had always been kept to the fact that he was from another reality and that it was a bleak place at best. Though he was secretly hoping they wouldn't pry any deeper, it was inevitable that questions would surface over time.

"Where I come from, weapons are very individualized. Trust me when I say mine isn't the craziest out there. But it might be the heaviest. I…um…I was enhanced, you could say, which made me stronger." Cloud could have been a little vaguer, but seemed to feel the need to share just a little more about himself. "My first sword, the Buster Sword, had been handed down to me. I inherited it from a friend when he died."

By their silence he could tell they were reading in between the lines. He had been a lab rat, tested on for days and days. A friend of his died saving his life, at which point Cloud was given the dead man's blade. Lebreau and Yuj quickly glanced at each other, as if to agree to stop asking questions.

Lebreau raised her arms over her head and stretched, yawning loudly. "I hope someone is cooking a decent supper when we get back. I could eat a whole behemoth, and then sleep for a week."

Yuj scoffed. "Like you did anything. Cloud was the one who killed all those monsters single handedly, even used some unbelievably powerful magic to do it. He's a fighter born. We should give him the whole supper."

"I had to listen to your endless chatter about your wrecked airbike. I've more than deserved some food." Lebreau shot back.

This went on for a while, eventually turning into how each one of them liked New Bodhum. Since Cloud hadn't seen the old one, Lebreau and Yuj happily gave him details and stories of their old life. It was pleasant to hear about happy memories for a change, with troubles few and far between. They told him how NORA was founded and for what purpose. NORA seemed to Cloud more like a street gang than a rebel group. He imagined Lighting must not have liked Snow Villers all that much at the start. Life was comfortable on Cocoon, so what was the use of rebelling? Then Cloud's mind went to Avalanche, the terrorist group that Barret Wallace had put together. They had been the real deal, getting their hands dirty, drawing public attention and getting real jobs done. And to think back in the day when he was cocky, Cloud thought they were a joke. He wondered if Barret would take a liking to Snow if they ever met, but then pushed that thought aside. There wasn't even a chance of it happening, so why think about it?

"Ah, Bodhum sweet Bodum." Yuj sighed as the village came into view.

"Not bad work for a bunch of rookies who didn't know how to hit a nail with a hammer." Lebreau agreed.

Cloud only nodded. Unlike Edge, the construction that had happened on this beach had really brought everyone together. Cloud knew everyone in New Bodhum by name, and they knew him. He wasn't as sociable as he would've liked, but he felt far more comfortable here than he ever had back home. But there was always a shadow in the back of his mind.

Lightning wasn't there.

"Drink at my place?" Lebreau asked as they crossed the gate. "It'll be on the house."

Yuj accepted in a heartbeat. But Cloud hesitated.

"I have things to do back home." He said, trying to sound truthful. "What if I came around later tonight?"

"Well you better." Lebreau said with a laugh. "You do remember that today is the first anniversary of New Bodhum, right?

"Of course."

He hadn't.

Yuj seemed particularly excited. "Yeah! We're going to have the gallon of milk jugging contest as well as arm wrestling competitions. Everyone's bringing food, we're going to play music, tell stories around the bonfire, and have sparring matches, fireworks, just all sorts of things!"

"Sounds like fun. I'll catch you guys later."

The two friends headed straight for the bar while Cloud made his way along the hot sand to his house. Many said hi to him along the way, knowing he had just come back from getting rid of some pulse monsters since it was a group of wandering kids that had come across them in the first place and warned the rest of the village about it. Cloud's house was near Snow's, one of the furthest away from the beach in case Pulse beasts attacked by land. So far hardly anything, save bloodbaths and the occasional giant fish, attacked from the sea. Every house was raised off the ground in case of flooding or rogue waves. The tropical storms on Pulse were brutal, unlike Cocoon's more regulated weather, and now the inhabitants had to build more practically. Cloud climbed the ladder up to his front door and pushed it open, glancing back for one more look at the horizon. It almost caused him to smile. Once inside, Cloud rested Fusion alongside the door and wandered off to his bed, dropping in on it with his full weight. It was not yet evening, the anniversary just a few hours away, but Cloud was tired all the same.

Something was pressing up into his chest, something pointy and cold. Cloud reached for it and touched the necklace Lightning had given to him on the day he proposed. He remembered having given her his wolf head earring. Cloud thought it had looked good on her, and how happy she felt having her own necklace close to his heart. But even that was dampened by the truth he was holding back from her. The truth was he was going to be leaving her.

A truth he had been reminded of that very same night.

XXXXX

Over a year ago…

"_You are holding back. Do you truly believe that by refusing to augment your abilities it will delay the inevitable outcome that you will return to your own universe?"_ Celeritas, the Fal'Cie that lived between realities, who claimed to be a guardian of some sorts, had come to Cloud that night as he and Lighting slept in each other's arms. Though instead of her true form, a crystal encased in a beautiful metallic body, the Fal'Cie had the form of Marlene, Barret's adoptive daughter.

They were in Tifa's 7th Heaven bar, not the one in Edge, but the old one under the Plate in Midgar. Cloud was in his SOLDIER uniform sitting at one of the few tables in the place with a glass of alcohol in his hands while Marlene sat across from him. Cloud knew it was a dream since the contents in his glass kept changing from rum, whiskey, beer, cider and so on. Whereas Marlene's appearance wasn't that of the seven year old girl Cloud knew, but rather she was considerably older, somewhere in her early twenties.

"_The problem with you mortals is that you are all fundamentally selfish."_ She began. It struck Cloud as amazing how beautiful 'Marlene' was and how accurate the Fal'Cie was in the adult depiction of the girl. _"You are willing to fight for the lives of thousands if you can benefit from the glory afterwards, even if the chances are slim. But stand to lose from those same actions and you gladly let others suffer."_

'Marlene' directed Cloud's attention to the window. When he looked he saw not the filthy streets of under the Plate, but the Plate itself, as though the bar was floating up and around the city. She continued, _"Once you learned about the Lifestream, you were happy to use its power, basking in the glory that future generations would praise you for your ingenuity. But when you discovered that this was killing the planet, you reasoned that such a catastrophe was far off and that those same later generations that would've praised you now had to find a solution to the disaster you would force unto them."_

"But we stopped that." Cloud countered, sipping on his drink. Strange, it tasted like lemonade.

"_What about when you left Tifa and Denzel and me to fend for ourselves simply to meet up with a pretty woman to snuggle up to. Was that not selfish of you? At least admit that you weren't very concerned about us at that time." _'Marlene' pointed out, her facial expression not showing any anger.

"I…"

"_And then there's not telling Lightning about how you will have to come back to us. You keep telling yourself it's to protect her, or is it because you're afraid she'll shun you for breaking her heart, turning her into a cold machine like one of the Fal'Cie that is manipulating her?"_

Cloud gritted his teeth angrily. "You're manipulating me! You're the one who brought us together time and again, then purposefully cut the link knowing I would raise hell trying to find her. Then you tell me I'm going to be torn apart from her **again** and you're so surprised that I refuse to do what you tell me to. You may have a long life, but you're no god! And stop pretending to be Marlene!"

The image of adult Marlene smiled but remained, her long ponytail hanging over her left shoulder. She cocked her head sideways and stared into Cloud's eyes. _"A girl can really lose herself in those, you know. And several have already."_

"Stop this!" Cloud hissed. He wanted to get up, but the rest of his body seemed perfectly content to remain sitting.

"_Would you rather I take this form?"_ Marlene disappeared and in her place was fifteen year old Tifa, with her leather vest, hiking boots and cowgirl hat. But what shocked Cloud to see was the long, bloody gash that was across her middle, opening her intestines to the outside. Looking into her eyes Cloud noticed they were glazed over.

"Please, stop." He begged.

"_Perhaps this instead?"_ Aerith replaced Tifa, her skin sheet white, with colorless eyes and a bloodstained dress. Dark spots were forming where she had started to decompose.

"Enough!" Cloud was frozen in place though each muscle was screaming to move.

"_I think this would be the most appropriate."_ Celeritas transformed one last time, into a very dead looking Zack.

Screaming, Cloud finally managed to leap out of his chair and down unto the taunting Fal'Cie, the buster sword that his friend had given to him years earlier in hands, slicing vertically for the head. But Zack's image didn't get cut; instead it exploded into thousands of shards like tempered glass. In fact the whole bar and the world outside did the same, leaving Cloud alone in a void darkness very much similar to the Black Ocean where he met Lightning for the first time.

"_Why are you so angry, Cloud?"_ Celeritas' voice came from everywhere at once, sounding like a melange of the voices of Zack, Aerith, Tifa and Marlene. _"I could've shown you anyone else and you wouldn't have behaved so violently. What's the difference with these four?"_

"You know why!" Cloud shouted back, blade ready as though something was about to sneak up him.

"_Then tell me. Prove to me that __**you **__know why."_

The angry, rasped breaths soon faded and Cloud's rage cooled. The Buster Sword slipped out of his hand and disappeared into the darkness as it fell at his feet, not even making a sound. When he spoke, he sounded defeated. "Out of everyone I know, those are the four I…I feel most guilty about."

"_Then imagine how guilty you will feel in years to come when everyone on you home world will suffer agony and die because of your inaction. I doubt even Lightning will be able to sooth your conscience with her caresses."_

And that's where the dream ended.

XXXXX

Someone was knocking at the door. Cloud rose up from his bed and opened it. The light of day was all but gone, fires were lit all throughout New Bodhum, and the leader of NORA was standing right in front of him.

"Hey, brother! Serah was worried that you might've fallen asleep and would miss everything." Snow said brightly, towering a foot above him. Since the young man always called Lightning 'sister', he had no trouble calling Cloud 'brother' once he learned they were engaged. Snow looked at Cloud and blinked. "You don't look so good. You okay?"

"Sorry. Just thinking about…you know…the past." Cloud explained cryptically. Even after Lightning vanished, he still hadn't told anyone about the fact he was a l'Cie.

Snow gave him a punch in the shoulder. "Well tonight's about celebrating the future! Coming?"

Cloud glanced behind him, looking at the inside of his empty, barely furnished house. Stay alone and think of my regrets, or leave and forget about them for a little while? Then Celeritas' words from that night over a year ago sprang into his mind.

"_You are all fundamentally selfish."_

"Sure." Cloud replied with a faint grin. "I'm coming."

End of Chapter.

**A/N: For those of you who noticed, yes the beginning is a rip off the Episode Zero-Encounter when Lightning first met Yuj and Lebreau. Seeing how similar Lightning and Cloud appear, I thought I'd pay tribute to that fact by having Cloud fight the same monsters with the same people in the new seaside town, making similar observations about Lebreau's clothing. Except Cloud actually tells her. Don't criticize a woman's clothes, Cloud! Of course I jazzed up the opening fight a little. Hey, who's to say Alpha Bloodbaths don't exist, right?**

**Sorry if the dream was a little gruesome, but Celeritas is trying to get her point across and doesn't care how she does it. I'll apologize in her stead.**

**Thank you for reading as I'm sorry for any mistakes I've made. Please review and tell me what you think of Cloud Strife hanging out in New Bodhum!**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Ah! It's good to be writing again. Here is chapter two, as promised. I needed to read it aloud to make sure it sounded alright, then realized it needed more dialogue. Thanks for reading and lease leave me your thoughts.**

Chapter Two

A lot of things happened that night that Cloud had not expected. First of all Sazh, Dajh and Hope made a surprised visit, which only made it more difficult for Cloud to keep his socializing to a minimum. But he was glad to see his new friends again. The whole night Dajh switched from being at his dad's side to playing with Cloud, the young boy liking the man's pointy blond hair. Hope had grown a little in the year since The Fall and acted more mature, but had a hard time keeping his composure as girl after girl kept asking him to dance.

"Ah, to be young again." Sazh recalled fondly, though he was getting attention himself. Some women favored single fathers and Dajh was very irresistible girl magnet. "You mark my words, Cloud. One day that kid is gonna have some girl grab him by the arm and she will never let go."

Cloud was grateful that he himself wasn't being given any special attention. It was no secret that Lightning's disappearance had affected him deeply and that no one would be able to replace her. Therefore none of the women in New Bodhum tried, though that did not prevent them from having long, dreamy conversations about him. The only girl that had managed to bond very well with Cloud was Serah, who was also brooding over her sister. They seemed to be able to comfort each other when no one else could.

"How's the city at the base of Cocoon coming?" Cloud asked Hope after he was finally able to rest after over an hour of dancing, wanting to get his mind off Lightning.

"Slow. The politics are really putting the brakes on things. Everyone wants to have a say. Not like here. Everything gets done fast because there's only one person in charge." Hope said, talking about Snow. Cloud thought about how just over a year ago he had been ready to murder the man.

Cloud suddenly recalled just how unfriendly Hope was when they first met, that Hope was worried about Lightning getting hurt. And it had been justified fear as well. But with Lightning already gone, the truth might not come as such a shock anymore.

"Hope, there's something I-"

"What's going on over there?" Sazh asked aloud.

The sounds of cheering reached them, the lines 'Go Snow!' and 'Get'im Gadot!' being shouted out. Cloud and Hope rose up, brushing the sand off their clothes and went to where a group of people had gathered around a wooden table. There sat Snow Villers and his friend Gadot, hands locked, their muscles straining as they arm-wrestled. Half the crowd rooted for Snow, the others Gadot.

"Who you think is gonna win?" Sazh asked Cloud and Hope.

"Snow." Hope said without thinking.

"Really? Gadot looks in better shape to me." The pilot replied.

Cloud didn't venture a guess. Both men were in fantastic shape, built like reinforced tanks. The only other person he knew that was bigger was Barret. While Gadot did seem to have the advantage of size, Snow had pure charisma.

Then Snow began to give in.

"Ha! Getting soft eh?" Gadot taunted. "That's what happens when a girl getting into your life!"

A burst of laughter sounded out from the crowd.

"Ouch, that was mean." Hope remarked.

"Don't look now," Sazh said in a low tone, "But here comes the future Mrs. Villers herself."

Everyone died down into silence as Serah showed up, dressed in her usual. She took a quick look at the contest, smiled and then leaned over to her fiancée ear.

"Win for me, okay?" She said sweetly, leaning in even closer to give him a kiss on the cheek.

Cloud had never seen anything like it. Snow suddenly seemed to explode with power and Gadot quickly found himself fighting a whole new beast and started to lose.

Yuj laughed out loud along with several other people. "Quick! Someone kiss Gadot and even the playing field!"

Everyone laughed again. But then Lebreau stepped forward, put her face in front of Gadot's and gave him a full on smacker.

"Snap!" Sazh exclaimed as everyone else stared in stunned silence.

Gadot was so taken aback he completely lost concentration and Snow slammed him down unto the table. All were cheering as Snow raised his hands in victory, picking up Serah and hoisting her in the air. Gadot just stared at Lebreau in shock. The bartender gave her friend a smug look and casually walked away.

"Don't let her getaway!" Snow urged his friend on. "Go after her!"

When Gadot followed his friend's advice, more cheers and laughing were heard. Cloud finally gave a full, honest smile.

"That could've been you, you know." Said a voice besides him. It wasn't Hope's or Sazh's. They had already left his side and were congratulating Snow. It was the voice of a teenage girl with dark hair in a generic Cocoon party outfit, with knee-high socks, short skirt, brown, beige vest and long, white sleeves.

Cloud didn't recognize her despite knowing everyone in New Bodhum.

"Who-?"

"If that had been you instead of Gadot, and Lightning came up and kissed you hard like that, your mind would've turned right off. But of course Lightning isn't here, so you watch at a distance what otherwise could've been your life." The girl said. She blended perfectly into the crowd and she sounded amiable enough, but her eyes were what gave it away. They looked…endless, like staring up into the night sky.

"Celeritas." Cloud muttered beneath his breath. Any joy he had been feeling seconds ago was blown to dust.

"I understand the feelings you have towards me, Cloud. You blame me for taking your life, your dream life, away from you." Celeritas said in a tone that should no hint of pride or haughtiness.

"Isn't that what you fal'Cie do? Change lives as you see fit?" Cloud retorted.

"But I am not the kind of Fal'Cie that doesn't care one way or the other about the lives of others. Did you know I have seen every single dream there ever was? I feel all the sensations of hope, fear, vengeance, loss, innocence and outright guilt that accompany them. The burden I have been given is to be the keeper of dreams, to be their protector. I have done so for ages beyond count. Millions of these go through my mind every moment of everyday and they have affected me." The girl continued, applauding along with the crowd around them as two more men prepared to arm-wrestle with Snow acting as referee.

"You want those dreams to stop?" Cloud asked aggressively. Why has she come to spoil this night?

What she said surprised him.

"No, Cloud Strife. I want to keep them from ending. That's why I've taken you from one reality to the next to make you stronger so that billions of hopes, of dreams, can go on." She sounded calm, but her words reflected the fear deep within her. Cloud had never seen Celeritas like this. Was she trying a new tactic to manipulate him, or was she being honest?

She turned and looked at him with her unnatural eyes. "By hurting the one, I spare the many. I must be a monster to you so that you can be a savior to others."

"Like a drill sergeant." Cloud compared, nodding in understanding, but not in agreement. "He breaks the man to create the soldier, hardly ever showing kindness. Doesn't make it right, though."

Celeritas nodded. "I know. And I'm sorry."

Cloud turned and walked away. The fireworks had begun, led by Maqui and a new device he designed for the show, but Cloud had lost all interest. He wanted away from the Fal'Cie that seemed to suddenly have a change of heart and attitude toward him. But no matter how far he walked, he heard the sound of footsteps following him.

He was nearly on the other side of the beach when he spoke. "Leave me alone, Celeritas.

"Who is Celeritas?"

That wasn't Celeritas' voice, it was Serah's!

Cloud turned around to see the nineteen year old standing before him, her bare feet touching the now cool sand, her face visible with the light from the distant crystalized Cocoon. Her eyes were full of concern, her mouth open on the verge of asking more questions.

Cloud tried to evade her first. "Just some person."

"That girl you were talking to? Do you know her?" Her voice had a quiver to it. She was obviously worried about something.

Cloud nodded, "Yeah. I know her."

Then Serah's eyes began to brim with tears. "Just wait a little longer, Cloud. I know Éclair will come back soon and then you two can be together again and be happy. Please, give her a chance!"

Cloud immediately felt very foolish. Of course seeing Cloud talking to a strange girl in the middle of a party would worry Serah. Practically everyone had given up on Lightning other than Serah and himself. How terrible it would be for her to be the last person still hoping for Lightning's safe return. Cloud quickly approached his little adoptive sister and gave her a comforting hug as fireworks exploded high in the air above them.

"I'll never give up on Lightning, Serah. I know that she's alive and she's well and I won't ever stop believing that." He reassured her.

"Promise?" She sniffed softly.

"I promise." Cloud replied.

"Oh, thank you so much!" Serah had buried her face in his chest, sighing with relief.

"You're welcome. Now I think Snow will start to miss you. Go find him and we'll talk later after the party."

Serah said goodbye and headed back to the festival, leaving him alone on the beach.

"That was a cruel trick, Celeritas." Cloud called out to the night, convinced she could hear them.

The girl appeared out of thin air like magic, walking towards him without leaving any impressions on the sand. This only confirmed Cloud's suspicions.

"You're just an image that doesn't even exist in this world, but you made sure Serah could see you. You knew she would worry that I was being unfaithful to Lightning and see where it nearly drove her to?" Cloud was gesturing toward the party far in front of them. "And you dared try to tell me you're sorry for all that you have done?"

The teenage looking girl shook her head. "Once again it's all about your perception of things. Think about it for a moment. Serah has been worried about whether or not you've given up on Lightning for so long it's been affecting her happiness. By making her finally come out and tell you her concern, she's now reassured and can move on to focus on other, more important things. Don't you see, Cloud? You have affected the people of this world and before you go you can make them all just a little happier than they would be without you."

"Don't try to justify your actions." Cloud argued.

Celeritas shrugged slightly. "The proof is enough to speak for me. Just look there."

Pointing up at the starry sky, Cloud followed it to see a large, dark shape making its way toward New Bodhum. He instantly recognized its design.

"That's a PSICOM airship." He said in surprise.

The voice of the Fal'Cie took on a slightly haughtier tone. "That's right. It's going to land near the village. Now go over and keep what I've just told you in mind. Then later you can tell me I'm wrong."

He didn't know what she was on about, but Cloud didn't like the sudden appearance of the warship. Running back to where everyone else had gathered, the airship of PSICOM landed almost right in the middle of the beach, the back end touching the seawater, large enough to hold about fifty men. Everyone was wary, most of them still remembering how PSICOM had been so ready to execute them all after a Pulse Fal'Cie had been discovered in old Bodhum. Snow stood at the front, with Serah and the rest of his friends at his side. Cloud soon joined them.

"Why are they here?" Gadot asked viciously.

"I dunno." Sazh replied. "I didn't hear anything about this before we took off from Cocoon. Can't be good, though."

"They're going to ruin everything!" Hope said, echoing everyone else's thoughts

The door to the airship opened, people held their breaths, and out walked the director of the elite division of the military himself, Yaag Rosch. He stood straight like a pin, hands behind his back, face as grim as ever. As he walked down the ramp, twenty soldiers followed him, armed to the teeth. People's fears seemed to be realizing, murmurs spreading without the crowd.

"You're having a festive occasion in the middle of a monster infested land without anyone on the lookout…" Rosch began.

Snow stepped forward. "Look, Yaag, don't come here and try to lecture us. We've spent a year building our homes and we plan on celebrating -"

"Which is why my men will stand guard to ensure nothing interrupts New Bodhum's one year anniversary." Rosch finished much to everyone's astonishment. The military commander came forward to Snow and offered him his hand, which was hesitantly accepted. When he spoke again, it was just to the small group in front of him which was comprised of former l'Cie. "I was wrong about you all before, and I intend to make it right."

"Uh…" Was all the NORA leader could manage.

"Well, Snowflake? Is that all you have to say to a guy trying to repay an old debt?" Came a new voice from the airship that the NORA team new well.

"Amodar! Lighting's captain!" Maqui cried out.

"Thought you could sneak a party past me, huh? There's not an open bottle of booze within a hundred miles that I don't know about." Laughed the new general of the Guardian Corps. He gave Yaag a strong slap on the shoulder. "You have to forgive my comrade here. He's been itching to repay Lightning's beau for saving his life. Nearly threatened to shoot me if I didn't let him come."

"I did threaten to shoot you." Yaag said with a straight face. He looked at Serah and Cloud. "My condolences for your loss."

"Thank you, commander." Serah said for both of them.

The commander turned to his men, his voice gaining that hard, military edge. "Secure the area and make sure nothing disrupts the festival."

"Yes sir!" They all saluted and headed off in different directions.

Everyone kept staring, not quite believing their eyes. Times really had changed.

"Now then." Amodar rubbed his hands together. "What's this I'm hearing about a gallon of milk drinking contest?"

XXXXXX

Several hours later, well past midnight, Cloud began to see what Celeritas had been trying to tell him. As Yaag told the story in front of everyone of how Cloud stayed behind to help him after the PSICOM leader was injured fighting Lightning and her team, it dawned on the young man that if he hadn't done so the commander wouldn't be standing there.

"I was all ready to blow myself up along the creatures with my grenade when I felt this hand slap the explosive right out of my hand and then I heard a voice telling me not to be stupid. And there Mr. Strife stood, tall and proud with his ridiculous sword that no man should be able to lift, cutting through those behemoths like cotton." Yaag said as all the people in New Bodhum sat around the largest bonfire, eating and drinking. "Then he helped me up and we fought our way through all kinds of hell. I told him many times to just leave me, but he told me that he didn't want to hear the noble dying soldier routine and put up with me until we reached a platoon of my men, and then ran all the way back to meet up with his friends. I remember feeling sorry for whatever would get in his way. That man right there killed more pulse monsters with his overgrown kitchen knife than an entire squadron of PSICOM'S best ever could."

Everyone cheered and applauded, leaving Cloud grateful it was too dark to see him turn red as he got repeatedly patted on the back. Amodar, who was sitting in the sand next to him, seemed particularly buddy, endlessly ruffling Cloud's hair. The story hadn't quite happened that way, but there was no point trying to say otherwise. Yaag raised his arms for silence, all the time smiling uncharacteristically. Maybe Lebreau had spiked his drink with something special when she had handed it over to him? Regardless, everyone, even Hope, looked forward to what he had to say next.

"Since after The Fall many things have happened. Some bad, but most good. And to be standing here, in the middle of New Bodhum, seeing the fruit of hard work by those who haven't given into despair, I and all of PSICOM salute you!" Yaag raised his hand to his forehead and stood at attention while everyone around him broke out into shouts of joy. It seemed that old scars and past wrongs were being left behind.

_I…I helped in this._ Cloud thought to himself. _All this time I believed that my struggles were for nothing, since Lightning isn't here. But everyone, Snow, Serah, Sazh, Hope and the others, they are happy just as she would've liked them to be. I didn't have a big part to play, but just knowing that I did makes me…happy._

"_I see your beginning to understand." _Celeritas said. He hadn't seen her arrive, but it didn't matter. No one else saw her, every eye trained on Snow as it was his turn to make a speech. As the young man spoke, the Fal'Cie continued. _"This is your last night on Pulse, Cloud. During the past year you have been honing your powers as you defended this town and its people without any distraction. You've done well."_

"Without distraction? You mean with Lightning missing, right?" Cloud asked, looking Celeritas in the eye. "Are you responsible for that? When I'm gone, will she come back?"

The disguised Fal'Cie smiled. _"You ask a great many things, Cloud. But the answer to all is no. Your love's disappearance was not of my doing, though it did serve my purpose. Her fate is that of this world's, I have no say in it."_

That answer gave him mixed feelings. If Celeritas wasn't responsible, then who was? Was Lightning alright? Would she ever come home? Would he ever see her again?

He felt a hand touch his face in very much the same way a mother does to comfort her child. Cloud was surprised that the Fal'Cie's skin felt so warm.

"_Despair not, soldier of Gaia. I cannot foretell the future. There are powers far above my own and perhaps they will see to it that you both are restored to each other. But first must come duty. Please use the last remaining hours you have to say a proper farewell."_ And with those words Celeritas vanished for the last time.

It took Cloud several seconds to realize that someone was calling out his name. When he did, all eyes were expectantly upon him. Snow was standing nearby, offering him a hand.

"Everyone has spoken. Care to put in a few words?" The tall man asked with a grin.

Cloud pondered for a moment. "Sure."

Rising up, Cloud entered the center of the circle near the fire, its heat comforting in the late night chill. Everywhere he looked a dozen faces stared back, bright and healthy. He would certainly miss this place.

Taking a deep breath Cloud began.

"All of you know by now that I am not from Gran Pulse or Cocoon, but that I am from a place very far away. Many of you believed it was the love I had for Lightning and she for me that made it possible for me to cross realities to join her. You all think that because that's what I have told you. But that's not the truth."

He could see the confusion and concern in their eyes, particularly Sazh, Snow and Hope. Oddly enough, Serah just nodded, as though she had known all along. He continued.

"I'm going to tell you the story of how I met the girl of my dreams, how she was there when I waked, and finally how we took things in our hands to find each other. But this story has secrets which must be told, which will be told, if you want to hear it."

The silence was heavy and lasted a long time, until Serah finally broke it.

"It's alright, Cloud. Tell it." She urged.

And he did.

XXXXXX

It was all over now. As the night began to fade one by one the inhabitants of New Bodhum went home to sleep. Sazh, Dajh and Hope said farewell and wished Cloud the best, though Hope seemed mildly angry at the idea of losing yet another friend. Sazh seemed very understanding.

"We've all got secrets. They can be easy to let slip or very hard to share. I can only hope that wherever you end up being, that you can be happy." The pilot shook the blonde's hand and then entered his own airship.

"Goodbye, mistah Cloud!" Dajh chimed in.

Hope stood in front of the blonde man silently for a while. When he did speak he was fighting back tears. "I don't care how long it takes. If I can do anything about it you and Lightning will be back together again, got it?"

Cloud nodded. "Got it."

Hope offered his hand, which Cloud shook, then joined Sazh and Dajh in the airship. Moments later the ship lifted off and headed back in the direction of Cocoon.

Yaag and Amodar were the last to leave. The PSICOM director had one last perimeter sweep done before being satisfied that nothing would creep up on the village as they slept. As they were loading up into the warship, Amodar waved good-bye.

"Let me know next time you're in the area. We'll have a rematch at that drinking game, ya cheater!" The large man laughed as the door sealed shut.

"Why did he call you a cheater?" Snow asked as he and Cloud watch the airship rise and sped off, the sky starting to grow a little brighter.

"Friend back home had a bar, so my alcohol tolerance is pretty high." Cloud explained.

"Ha! That's hilarious." Snow pulled his eyes away from the skies to the village he helped inspire others to build. "So, you're really going through with…this situation that Fal'Cie has put you in? You're not going to stay?"

"Not my choice. But even if I don't agree with how Celeritas did it, I understand why it has to be done. People need my help. I don't know why they need it or how I alone can change things, but I won't be able to live with myself if I don't."

"Yep." Snow nodded, though he sounded very distant. "You don't need a reason to help somebody."

They stood in awkward silence.

"So, uh…you've had a l'Cie brand on your right hand for over a year now? I guess this Fal'Cie wasn't in too much of a hurry." Snow tried to joke.

"Yeah…I guess."

Suddenly the large man grabbed Cloud in a fantastically strong bear hug, his eyes turning slightly red. "You look out for yourself, ok? And not just for your sake, but for ours too. Serah is going to feel a lot lonelier around here with you gone as well." He was sniffing loudly too.

"Thanks." Cloud strained for air. When Snow finally let go, he took in a relieved breath. "She'll be more than fine. She still has you."

Snow nodded his head, but didn't seem to whole heartedly agree. Both men saw Serah come out of Lebreau's house and head toward them, a smile on her face.

"Looks like my girl wants to say her goodbyes now. I'll leave the two of you alone." With that Snow walked away.

When he got near to Serah it was obvious that she needed to comfort him. His head was hung low and he kept bringing his hand up to his eyes. Cloud could see Serah touching his arm and say something to her man, but Cloud was too far to hear. Snow nodded to whatever Serah had said and headed straight for his house, turning around one last time to give Cloud a thumbs up with his brightest grin.

Serah met Cloud out near the edge of the water. "You and my sister are very much alike, did I ever tell you that? When you're focused you both look terribly mean. When you're happy you both are very quiet. And when you have secrets, you close yourselves away to the world. I was afraid I was never going to find out what was bothering until it was too late."

"I'm sorry I won't be here when she returns." Cloud apologized. "Please give her my deepest love."

"I'll remind her every day." Serah promised.

The sun began to break the horizon, drawing both of their attention. The stood for a moment, content to let the warm rays caress their faces. Cloud could feel a pull toward the great light source, as though he was being summoned by it.

"I think this is it." Cloud said aloud, feeling very peaceful.

"Then go." Serah said encouragingly.

"Goodbye, little sister." Cloud gave the young woman a kiss on her forehead as she embraced him tightly.

"I love you, Cloud."

"So do I."

Letting him go, Serah watched as Cloud began to walk toward the sea, her eyes widening as Cloud's foot touched the water's surface but didn't sink. He kept going, walking as though it was dry land, off into the distance toward the sun. The light blinded Serah and she was forced to look away. When she tried to find him again he was gone.

"Goodbye." She whispered into the morning breeze.

She felt a strong hand rest on her shoulder and knew it was Snow's without having to see. Together they looked on until the sun was fully in the sky.

"May you finally be happy."

XXXXXX

How long had he been walking? Time had no meaning here, it seemed. It could have been a century and he wouldn't know. He wasn't tired or hungry. The only thing in his heart was a prevailing sensation of peace. All around him was only endless water, the shores of Gran Pulse far behind him. Was he even on Gran Pulse anymore? Maybe he was walking through the dimension at that very moment, in which both space and time would be relative.

"It wasn't like this the first time." Cloud said.

He didn't know how he knew exactly that Celeritas was near, but her answer proved he was right. She didn't make a physical appearance, but her voice was there. "That's because you're not changing realities at the present moment, Cloud."

"What? Then where am I? What is this?" He asked, not alarmed but certainly confused. What was the Fal'Cie playing at now?

"This is you final test, Cloud Strife. Or your final gift. It depends how you choose to see it." She answered, just as cryptically as ever. "Look in front of you."

What he saw was a distant coast, one that Cloud could've sworn wasn't there seconds ago. There stood a vast city, beautiful and ancient in design, with tall towers crowned with giant arcs of emerald colored crystals. The skies were full of darkening clouds, only adding to the age and mystery of it. Cloud had never seen anything like it before in his life.

"What is this place?" He asked.

"Valhalla, the place beyond time." Celeritas explained. "Where the powers of good and evil are forever in conflict."

His eyes focused on the scene. There was a commotion in the city, a large flock of birds had gathered near what could best be described as the main castle. Far below it a different flock was gathering, that of machines shaped into beings only nightmares can spawn.

Celeritas was right, there was a battle happening. Even at this distance he could see who was leading the attack from the shore. A tall man, slender and muscular, with long, purple hair adorned with feathers and tribal beads, a long bandana tied about his head. He was wearing armor of black and purple, his sword large enough to rival Cloud's, but it looked far more ornate. He was currently atop of a giant, floating rock he had summoned from the earth, his blade locked with that of another warrior, one Cloud recognized.

"Lightning!" He said in disbelief.

And in a second Cloud was off to join the battle.

**AN: If you haven't read In Our Hands, then you've missed Cloud's story. Find it for all the details. This chapter is different from most of my moody takes, but then again it is about Cloud realizing just how much he means to people and that what he does matters. And yes, Yaag Rosch is alive. I decided he would be two seconds after seeing his death of FFXIII.**

**Thanks for reading and I'll have the next chap up soon!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Yes, I've finished it! For those who don't know, I realized before posting chapter 3 that it was boringly lame. I basically took the opening scene in FFXIII-2 and added Cloud in at certain spots. It was rather uncreative and just plain dull. I spent days thinking how to improve it and then realized that I forgot to add something entirely that I had purposefully left out of In Our Hands. I'll get back to that by the end of the chapter.**

**Warning, slight SPOILERS here, though not really, just to be safe. Thank you for reading and leave your thoughts in a review! They seriously help me out.**

* * *

><p>Chapter Three<p>

Falling

"Caius Ballad!" Lightning cried as she flew through the air towards the dark immortal.

His reply was slashing his blade horizontally, unleashing a wave of energy up to meet her. Lightning had seen it before. Capable of cutting through solid rock, there was little chance she would be able to survive such an attack much less withstand it. Her mind raced to think of what to do when an idea hit her. Using the shield given to her by Etro herself, Lightning deflected the energy beam skyward into Caius' summon portal, shattering it to fine pieces. The sky darkened as the purple energy dissipated, the giant boulders Caius had been keeping afloat moments before now dropping out of the sky.

"Impressive." Caius said as Lightning landed behind him.

Was he taunting her? Lightning didn't care either way.

"Save it and fight." She replied bitterly just before turning around and striking with her gunblade.

Caius responded just as quickly and locked swords with her. The blow caused the air to crack as their strength and skill were evenly matched.

For now.

The mountain sized rock at their feet cracked in half as it continued it's free fall and soon Lightning found herself battling Caius amide boulders tumbling like pebbles, their strikes the only other sound besides the growl of clashing rocks. Caius brought his blade down for her head, but Lightning blocked with her shield and stabbed back. Caius leaned to the side and avoided the gunblade's razor edge and struck back once more. Lightning leaped clear over his head, his blade meeting only stone. She then took her chance to kill him, aiming for the neck. Caius surprised her by grabbing the blade and stopping it with his hand.

"Damn you." She hissed.

Caius gave her a coy smirk, forcing the blade away from his face and down until it was above his chest, inches from his heart. "Enough of this, warrior goddess. Let's end it."

Farron's eyes went wide in alarm as a red light began to glow at the exact location of Caius' heart. It throbbed rhythmically, proving that whatever it was, it was alive.

"What is that glow!" She asked, pulling away from her opponent.

Caius appeared to get suddenly angry and growled, "Cast your shadow over all, Wings of Night!"

His sword, Ragnarok, light up with blue fire, the eye near its hilt exploding with purple light that momentarily blinded Lightning. Dark smoke appeared out of the air and swirled violently around Caius like a storm, concealing him in a dense shroud that Lightning could not see past. The wind grew stronger, pushing her, harder and harder until it blew her away and unto another giant falling boulder. The dark smoke cleared, and Lighting felt her resolve slip for a moment as what stood before her would no doubt send seasoned fighters fleeing in terror.

Chaos Bahamut roared with enough power to shake Lightning's armor before flapping his mighty wings and dashed forward to attack, eyes red like a demon. Lightning knew better than to stand and take it so she leapt out of harm's way as Chaos Bahamut reduced the spot where she had been standing to nothing. She soared high up in the air, spun around and readied her sword to counterattack. But Bahamut had already caught up with her and slashed at her with his massive claws. Lightning met him with her blade and for a moment she held him there.

The second blow came from his right claw which she didn't see until it had already struck and Lightning was sent flying far over the city of Valhalla deep in mental darkness, the whole world going white.

White.

That all there was. Just a vast expanse of white space and Lightning was falling through it without any sight or sound, entirely alone.

"He's pretty tough, isn't he?" came a voice.

"Cloud?" She asked. She couldn't see him, but his voice was unmistakable. "What are you doing here?"

"I seem to remember a time when you were able to handle much tougher guys than this showoff. What's happened to you?" Cloud's voice was gentle, lightly teasing her predicament as though she had merely slipped and fell to the floor.

Finally she saw him, flying up at her, his arms wide open ready to catch her and break her fall, his long, spiky hair fluttering in a wind she couldn't sense. He was dressed in clothing that was different than usual. His shirt was cover with white patterns. His boots were white, as was the small pack slung over his back in the shape of a moogle. His belt had the original SOLDIER symbol on it, his pauldron, gauntlets and belt had small blue and white details, and his belt had a string of beads hanging off it. It certainly looked Gran Pulse influenced. Lightning hardly felt a thing as she landed in his arms.

"What are you doing here?" She asked again. They were flying, higher and higher into the open whiteness, just the two of them, smiling gently at each other.

"I'm here to help." He replied. Strange, but his lips didn't move when he spoke. "But I need you to do something for me first."

"What?"

"Wake up!"

Lightning jolted back to reality, to dark skies and vast oceans. Cloud was there, and she was indeed nestled in his arms like the fainted maiden she had been seconds ago. But they weren't flying. They were falling. Cloud's feet hit the sand of the beach the very next moment, bending his knees to compensate for the extra weight. Lightning's armor was heavier than it looked.

"I thought you were dead!" Cloud exclaimed, still holding her, their faces no more than five inches apart.

A moment flashed between them to close that distance and rekindle their affections, but it passed quickly in view of their circumstances. They were warriors and now wasn't the time for sentimental reunions. That would have to wait, unfortunately.

Lightning placed her feet firmly on the ground, reading sword and shield, her eyes scanning the skies for signs of Caius.

"There." Cloud was pointing of into the distance near the north. The distant outline of the flying dragon could be seen heading their way. "Who is he?"

"Someone who wants the end of everything." Lightning summed up.

"Great." Cloud muttered, raising Fusion. "Another psycho."

Chaos Bahamut was gaining speed, ready to unleash a volley of flares in their direction. It crossed Lightning's mind to call forth Odin and try to outrun the fiend, but with Cloud at her side that wasn't going to be necessary. She had seen him battle Barthandelus and then Orphan with no use of magic whatsoever. But then again Orphan, as well as Barthandelus, had been able to die.

"Have you fought anything like that before?" She asked him.

"Yes, but bigger." He replied.

"Alright then." Lightning said with determination. "Let's finish this!"

Having spent a great amount of time together not only in the dreams but also during their first visit to Grand Pulse, Cloud and Lightning had many chances to perfect their dual fighting technique. Lightning jumped up as Cloud rotated his body in a full circle, dragging his sword behind him like a club. Lightning's feet landed back down on the broad side of Fusion just in time for Cloud to launch her through the air like an arrow straight for Choas Bahamut. Lightning hit the dragon sword first in the chest, neatly halting his forward momentum.

Cloud came up shortly afterwards, his ability to leap high and far a great advantage when flying enemies were concerned. He raised Fusion over his head and brought it down on Bahamut's head, knocking the dragon downwards. Roaring in pain and anger, the dragon fought back, swinging claw and baring teeth. The couple went at the beast without holding back.

Suddenly Bahamut rotated its body in midair with a powerful beat of its wings, knocking both combatants off, letting them free fall to the city below. Bahamut opened its maw wide in preparation of a Megaflare, ready to burn them to a crisp. Lightning fired a volley into its mouth at the last second, causing the flare to explode prematurely. All three were caught in the terrible shockwave, Bahamut engulfed in light and fire while Cloud used Fusion as a shield to protect both him and Lightning from the worse of it. They landed on their feet whereas the dragon crashed unceremoniously on top of the nearest building, both crumpling to the ground.

"Now!" Lightning shouted.

Cloud cast Blizzaga and Lightning cast Firaga at the half buried dragon, fire and ice whirling around each other, mixing violently and blowing up like a powerful bomb, shattering stone and glass to dust. Whatever had been left of the structure Choas Bahamut had landed on was blown apart and scattered wide. Only a deep crater remained.

Lightning and Cloud stood in silence, side by side, the later smiling with relief.

"It's done!" He said.

But Lightning wasn't happy. She hurriedly sped forward toward the crater, gripping her sword and shield tightly. She could hear Cloud's footsteps right behind her.

"It's not over." She replied.

They reached the lip of the large hole in the ground at the same time. The dust was still thick and would take time to settle, time which Lightning didn't want to wait. Casting Aero, she blew the dust aside in one gust of wind, revealing the entire crater to be empty.

"There's nothing left, Light." Cloud said soothingly. "He's gone."

She felt him touch her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She wanted to believe him, to forget about this war she had been fighting alone for who knew how long and look up into his rich, Mako infused eyes. But how could she? Cloud didn't even fully understand what they were dealing with.

Lightning shook her head, pulled her hand away from Cloud's, and began to quickly scanning the area. "He can't die, Cloud. Caius is immortal. He's probably hiding-"

Caius' blow was so fast neither Lightning nor Cloud had time to react. He came from behind and struck Lightning on the lower back, sending her flying over the crater, tumbling across the ground and smashing through the wall of the next building beyond. Caius next cast a barrage of ruin orbs which blew the foundation of the edifice and brought it crashing down, with Lightning still inside.

"NO!" Cloud yelled, dashing forward to save her.

But out of the corner of his eyes Cloud saw Caius coming at him with his blade Ragnarok ready for the kill and whipped around at the last second. The sound of their clashing blades rang out over the empty city.

Their eyes met, locked just as their weapons were. All Cloud could see in Caius' gaze was contempt for life, a look he had seen many times in his life. Rufus Shinra's father once had that look, so had professor Hojo and Scarlett. And, of course, Sephiroth.

"We're going to stop you." Cloud said through his gritted teeth.

"Hmph." Caius replied. "Mortals always believe they can defy fate."

The darkly clade man suddenly pulled back, letting Cloud stumble forward, kicking him to the ground before the young man could stabilize himself. Cloud hit the dusty pavement, blinking sand and debris out of his eyes. He heard Caius step forward to attack and rolled over to his side just as Ragnarok cut a clean gash where he had been lying. Cloud sprang to his feet and struck back, Fusion's full weight crashing down on his opponent. Caius began to step back, obviously not expecting this much strength and skill from such an unassuming looking foe.

"I can see why her heart burns brightly in your company, mortal. The last time I fought a swordsman such as you it took days for him to die." Caius' words were dark, poison to the ears, affecting Cloud like toxic gas in his lungs. "And what a painful end it was. Did you know a man can endure over a thousand cuts before bleeding to death?"

Not wanting to hear the man talk anymore, and the thought of Lightning suffocating beneath tons and tons of rubble, Cloud began to get angry. He pulled back just long enough to disassemble the Hollow Blade from the rest of Fusion and then attacked again, doubling his ferocity. Though having two blades to contend with, Caius easily compensated, suddenly being able to go faster than anything Cloud had seen before. The tide turned, and now Cloud was backing off, using his full concentration to just avoid being killed.

"Can you see it now, mortal? Your final moments when life will leak out of you like a stream of red until all that is left is a cold corpse for her to embrace in mourning?"

The man was taunting Cloud, throwing him off with mental images of Lightning standing heartbroken over his lifeless body, losing the will to fight. The anguish it racked Cloud with was more than a physical pain could accomplish. It stung his heart. Cloud decided he had enough.

As Caius struck with a high blow, Cloud brought both blades up and caught Ragnarok at the axis. Both of Cloud's blades lit up with intense fire, reflecting his anger.

"What?" Caius said in surprise.

Cloud used his blades to push Caius away by force, sliding him almost a dozen feet away, the man falling to his knees. By the time Caius looked back up, Cloud was already in the air, bringing both blades in for the final strike. Caius raised his hand and cast Ruinga as they met. The following explosion blew everything within the immediate area away.

When Cloud regained consciousness, he was on his back, laying on a pile of rocks, battered and bruised, the taste of his own blood in his mouth. A thick plume of dust hung in the air making it impossible to see anything at a distance. As he struggled to move, he heard someone coming, their footsteps the only thing he could identify them with. He was hoping the Lightning had managed to free herself. But when the person got near, Cloud saw it was Caius, alive and well, and holding Fusion!

"Impressive. I have never seen such a versatile blade before. Not only have you gone with sheer size, mortal, but sheer numbers as well." Caius raised the blade in front of him and removed his hand from the hilt, letting Fusion float by using the powers of chaos. With a gesture the immortal divided the blade into its separate parts, all six blades forming a wide circle around him. He inspected each one before stating, "Truly the weapons of a walking army."

Caius' gaze went from Fusion's individual parts back down to Cloud, who had managed to pull himself to his feet, although shakily.

"How will you do without them?"

And like that the blades flew off in six different directions around Valhalla, lost amongst the vast, endless sea of structures. Smirking, Caius readied Ragnarok, gesturing Cloud to come at him. "Let's see how skilled you really are."

Cloud could not even catch his breath. He had just given all he had, thrown Caius every move he could think of, even tried to end the fight in an explosion that nearly killed himself, and still the dark warrior wanted more.

"Fine. You asked for it." Cloud whispered.

The bolt of lightning Cloud threw flashed at Caius at blinding speed, but he still managed to deflect it with his blade. In that time Cloud closed the gap between them and connected his right fist underneath Caius' jaw. While the immortal still in midair Cloud grabbed his leg, slamming him down on the ground, then spun him around and threw him as far as he could. Caius kept going until he hit a stone wall. Cloud remembered when Tifa had shown him that move first hand, and how much it had rattled him. Hopefully Caius would feel the same way. Putting his hands together, Cloud formed the strongest ruin orb he could muster and launched it at his opponent who sat motionlessly at the foot of the wall he had just hit. The impact blew the rest of the wall away, Caius' body flying limply through the air once more.

Seizing his chance, Cloud jumped high up in the air in Caius' direction, ready to ram both his feet into the man's back. He might've been immortal, but it would still seriously injure him. Cloud was five feet away when Caius bolted upright, ramming the end of his hilt into Cloud's abdomen. The combined force of the immortal's strength and Cloud's fall not only knocked the wind out of Cloud, he coughed up blood as well that splattered all over the ground. Hitting the ground tremendously hard, Cloud lay completely still, momentarily paralyzed.

And what was worse, his strength, his vigor, seemed to vanish.

He had failed. He gave it his all and he still ended up falling flat on his face. Lightning was trapped, at the mercy of a murderous man who could not die, and Cloud had been unable to do a damned thing. If he couldn't win a fight here, how was he supposed to overcome whatever was waiting for him back in his reality?

"I can't do this." Cloud said inaudibly.

"What did you say?" Caius leaned in closer, lifting Cloud's head so he could hear. "I want you so speak up so that I can see that in your heart you've given up. Say it again."

Ears ringing, head dizzy from a concussion, and bleeding internally, Cloud said again. "I can't…I…it's…it's over."

Caius chuckled. "Not quite yet."

Not understanding what the immortal was talking about, Cloud suddenly felt a strong pain on the back of his right hand. It was a burning, searing pain that got stronger and stronger with each passing second. It was the hand that bore his l'Cie brand. Screaming in pain, Cloud felt something pulling itself out of his skin. He was confused when he saw that it looked like a green materia, but didn't have time to ponder over it when it took off flying into the sky, shattering into fine shards. As a portal appeared Cloud finally realized what it had been. It was an Eidolith, a crystal that was used to summon Eidolons. He had seen Lightning and the others use them many times in battle, hearing their stories about how they acquired it. His own was now on its way.

Then the truth dawned on him. The Eidolon wasn't here to save him, but here to show him the right path by trying to kill him. That's what Caius had meant that it wasn't over yet. Cloud still had a chance of saving Lightning, but it meant that not only would he have to fight his Eidolon for the right to use him, he would also have to fight Caius at the same time. The immortal still planned on giving Cloud his one thousand cuts.

Caius grabbed Cloud by the hair and lifted him up so that they were face to face. "Embrace the terror, mortal, for now all is truly lost."

The immortal then threw Cloud at the foot of the portal just as the Eidolon stepped out. On his hands and knees, Cloud raised his head to see it. Before him stood a massive, silver, mechanical looking wolf.

Its name came to Cloud's lips without thinking.

"Fenrir."

End of Falling

Part One

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><p><strong>AN: And finally Cloud's summon is revealed, but only just. I still have a few surprises left with this tale, so hang in there! And then I can play FFXIII-2 in it's entirety and then get to work on Part 5. So Fenrir is an actual summon is some of the FF games, in case you weren't aware. The part when Caius says Cloud went with full size and full numbers with his sword is what the creative team of Advent Children said while trying to come up with designs for Cloud's new Buster Sword. Just a little tribute to those guys. I wanted a little segment of Cloud fighting with his bare hands, kind of to prove that he isn't a wimp.**

**Action is hard to write for me without getting repetitive, and I went through four different fight scenes between Lightning, Cloud and Caius before finding one that didn't bore me when reading it. Hope you weren't bore either**. **Don't worry, chapter 4 will be up soon!**


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